Sanitary masks



Jan. 24, 1967 F. R. STANLEY 3,299,889

SANITARY MASKS Filed July 29, 1964 INVENTOE Faeoalzuc E. STANLEY (Aland/ 2 4 '1 Km ATTORNEY) United States Patent 3,299,839 SANITARY MASKS Frederic Reginald Stanley, Wembley, Middlesex, England, assigno'r, by mesne assignments, to The Martindale Electric Company, Cleveland, Ohio, a company of Ohio Filed July 29, 1964, Ser. No. 385,923 Claims priority, application Great Britain, July 30, 1963,

. 30,238/63 Claims. (Cl. 128146) This invention relates to sanitary masks of the kind comprising a supporting member in the form of a plate having in the centre portion of its upper edge a nose recess and formed and arranged also to provide a mouth aperture below and spaced from the nose recess for the inhalation of air, a layer or pad of filtering medium, for example, cotton wool or textile gauze, supported by said supporting member so as to extend over the nose recess and mouth aperture, and means, such as a strap attached to the outer sides of the supporting member, for holding the mask in position over the mouth and nostrils of the wearer. Such masks are commonly used in an atmosphere which is polluted by dust or other foreign matter and examples of them are shown and described in British patent specifications Nos. 835,383 and 680,339.

According to the present invention a supporting plate for a sanitary mask of the kind referred to is formed with at least one opening the margin of which has serrations along a part or parts of its length for retaining the pad of filtering material in position by means of a portion of the pad of filtering material passed through the opening.

Preferably the opening or each of the openings is formed so as to provide oppositely directed serrations arranged to provide a suitable gap for the insertion of the required part of the pad of filtering medium.

The number and disposition of the openings may vary but in one construction according to the invention a single opening extending along the lower portion of the supporting plate is provided while in another construction according to the invention two openings are provided adjacent to opposite sides of the supporting plate.

The invention is particularly applicable to supporting plates formed of flexible plastic material and in this case, according to another feature of the invention, the supporting plate may be provided with slots through which extend parts of a flexible, and preferably elastic head band, for securing the supporting plate to the face of a wearer, each slot having at least one edge which is thin in relation to the thickness of the plate as a whole while the opposite edges lie so close as to exert a grip on the band sufficient to hold it from slipping unintentionally through the slot while allowing for adjustment when desired.

The invention may be carried into practice in various ways but two constructions according to the invention are shown by way of example in the accompanying drawings in which,

FIGURE 1 is a front view of one construction of mask according to the invention with a filter pad shown ready for attachment to the supporting plate,

FIGURE 2 is a similar view to FIGURE 1 of the supporting plate of another form of mask according to the invention the headband and the filter pad being omitted for the sake of clarity of illustration,

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged view of the part of the supporting plate shown in FIGURE 2 immediately adjacent to one of the slots formed therein to receive part of head band, and

FIGURE 4 is a cross section on the line 4-4 of FIG- URE 3.

"ice

In the construction shown in FIGURE 1 the supporting member comprises a substantially U-shaped supporting plate 1 made of plastic or like resilient sheet material and having a pair of vertically disposed slots 2 and 3 in each of the arms of the U, the inside edge portions 4 and 5 of which slots are thinner than the surrounding part and terminate in sharp edges.

An elastic strap having a part 6 which extends between the arms of the U-shaped supporting plate passes through theupper slot 2 in each arm of the supporting plate in a rearward direction, round the adjacent outside edge of the plate and then rearwardly through the lower slot 3 at each side as shown so that the end portions 7, which are provided with connecting hook and eye members 7A, 7B can form a head band.

The sharp edges of the slots 2 and 3 serve to grip the strap 6, 7 when the mask is placed on the face of a wearer with the head band constituted by the parts 7 around the wearers head and to produce a ratchet action so that the two arms of the plate can be drawn towards one another to adjust the nose recess when the outer ends 7 of the headband are pulled repeatedly.

The lower portion of the U-shaped supporting plate is provided with an opening 8 having serrated top and bottom edges 9 and 10 so that a filter pad, indicated at 11, of gauze or cotton wool may be held in position by pushing a portion of it through the opening which, since the material of the plate is resilient will then attempt to revert to its original shape and in doing so will grip the portion of the pad in question. It is thus a simple matter to remove a used pad and to replace it by a fresh one.

In the alternative construction of supporting plate shown in FIGURES 2, 3, and 4 the plate 12, is of U- shaped form as shown and is provided with slots 13 and 14 similar to the slots 2 and 3 in the construction shown in FIGURE 1 to accommodate a head band strap similar and similarly arranged to the head band strap 6, 7 in FIGURE 1. The plate 12 is formed of thin resilient plastic material and provided with shallow ribs 12A, 12B around its edge and around the slots 13 and 14 for strengthening purposes. The edge portions of the slots within the ribs 12B are thin compared with the body of the plate as shown at 13A in FIGURES 3 and 4. Formed in the supporting plate 12 at points adjacent to the opposite sides of its lower edge are two openings 15, 16 having margins as shown to provide serrations 17 with a space between them through which a portion of a filter pad of gauze or cotton wool similar to the pad 11 shown in FIGURE 1 can be pushed so as to be retained by the serrations. Such a pad would thus be placed against the rear face of the supporting plate 12 and the appropriate portions pressed through the openings 15 to attach the pad to the supporting plate in a manner permitting ready removal of a used pad and replacement by a fresh pad when desired.

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A sanitary mask comprising a supporting plate and a pad of filtering material supported thereon against one face thereof, wherein the supporting plate is provided with a nose recess in its upper edge and is also formed with at least one opening, the margin of which has serrations therealong extending partially across said opening substantially in the plane of said plate, and through which opening a portion of the pad of filtering medium is passed and is engaged and held by the said serrations.

2. A sanitary mask as claimed in claim 1 wherein the opening is formed to provide oppositely directed serrations.

3. A sanitary mask as claimed in claim 1 in which the opening extends along the lower edge portion of the supporting plate.

4. A sanitary mask as claimed in claim 1 in which thesupporting plate is provided with two openings having serrations, said two openings being disposed respectively adjacent to opposite sides of the supporting plate.

5. A sanitary mask as claimed in claim 1 including a flexible head head, in which the supporting plate is provided with slots in its opposite side portions through which extends parts of the flexible head band, each slot having at least one of its edges formed thin in relation to the thickness of the supporting plate as a Whole while the opposite edges of the slot lie so close together as to exert a grip on the band sufficient to hold it from slipping unintentionally through the slot while allowing for adjustment when desired, the supporting plate being U-shaped and a portion of the head band extending between the arms of the U.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,390,761 9/1921 Christiansen 24198 2,296,150 9/1942' Dockson et al. 128-146 2,518,631 8/1950 Mullen 128-291 2,845,926 8/1958 Hill 128146 RICHARD A. GAUDET, Primary Examiner.

K. L. HOWELL, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A SANITARY MASK COMPRISING A SUPPORTING PLATE AND A PAD OF FILTERING MATERIAL SUPPORTED THEREON AGAINST ONE FACE THEREOF, WHEREIN THE SUPPORTING PLATE IS PROVIDED WITH A NOSE RECESS IN ITS UPPER EDGE AND IS ALSO FORMED WITH AT LEAST ONE OPENING, THE MARGIN OF WHICH HAS SERRATIONS THEREALONG EXTENDING PARTIALLY ACROSS SAID OPENING SUBSTANTIALLY IN THE PLANE OF SAID PLATE, AND THROUGH WHICH OPENING A PORTION OF THE PAD OF FILTERING MEDIUM IS PASSED AND IS ENGAGED AND HELD BY THE SAID SERRATIONS. 